Payroll usually means headaches. But here's what I tell most of my clients. First, Some Background When you pay an independent contractor, things are usually easy. You pay them and they take care of their own tax obligations. That's it! (Although, sometimes you have to give them a 1099. See this for more.) But [...]
Here's an intro to the two most common trademark application options. Actual Use When you file an Actual Use trademark application, you are seeking a registration for a mark which you are already using in commerce. Pretty simple, right? With this kind of application, you have to provide two specific things in your application: [...]
If you can't delete an entire sentence, try modifying it. You are likely to encounter contract provisions that place a lot of risk on you that the other party will not allow you to delete. When this happens, knowing how to modify it to reduce your risk, while keeping the provision is a great [...]
It's easy for competitors to copy your skills, but hard for them to copy your authentic personality. Paul Jarvis dedicates an entire chapter of his book (Company of One) to personality. He writes... Personality – the authentic you that traditional business has taught you to suppress under the guise of 'professionalism' – can be [...]
e-Signatures are better than physical signatures in most situations. Here's what you should know. Most e-signatures are valid The ESIGN Act (the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act) was signed into law in 2000. Moreover, most states have adopted some from of the UETA (the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act). In general, these [...]
You can't afford to get this part of your contract wrong. Here's how to do it right! First, an intro to why this matters... The party to a contract is the person or business responsible for all of the obligations in the contract. Thus, if an obligation isn't performed, the named party is the [...]
Do you know the answer? Are you sure your answer is right? If not, here are some tips to finding the right answer. The Default Rule This part is pretty easy–the person that creates an original work will own the copyright to that work unless one of the exceptions below applies. Three Exceptions There [...]
Writing numbers two (2) times in contracts is a really dangerous thing to do. Here's why.... Just last week, I was reviewing a contract that said "two thousand dollars ($3,000)." Had I not caught that, my client and the other party would have signed a contract with a clear ambiguity. Is it $2,000 or [...]
Writing a contract is easy when you follow these five simple rules. 1. Use "Shall" to Create Obligations An obligation is something a party must do. You should use “shall” to create obligations. (Obligations also create “rights” on the other side. In this example, Bob has a right to expect Gene to perform.) Example: [...]
Trademark application fees can be confusing. Here's a summary to help. Actual Use v. Intent to Use Broadly speaking, there are two types of trademark applications: Actual Use: If you file based on actual use of a mark in commerce, you will usually only pay one filing fee for the application itself. That fee [...]